


Four Times Aang’s Attempts at Romance Backfired and One It Didn’t

by Tassos



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Community: fandom_stocking, F/M, Post-Series, five things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-01-07
Updated: 2011-01-07
Packaged: 2017-10-14 12:09:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/149124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tassos/pseuds/Tassos
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What it says on the tin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Four Times Aang’s Attempts at Romance Backfired and One It Didn’t

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Browneyedmami](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Browneyedmami/gifts).



1\. Flowers

“Here!” Aang thrust the bouquet of bright red flowers at Katara. The sunset across the water was a brilliant orange, washing both the Fire Nation capital and Katara in soft light.

“Where did you get these?” asked Katara, bringing them close to smell the blooms. “Aang, they’re beautiful!”

“You like them?” Aang grinned. He loved seeing Katara smile, her whole face lighting up. It made Aang feel warm inside, like he was fit to burst.

“I do, I —” Just as the sun dipped over the horizon the flowers burst into flame, startling Katara — and singeing her eyebrows. The smile dropped off her face and she glared at him. “Aang!”

“Oh no!” said Aang, quickly bending the flame into nothing. Katara helped with a healthy twist of water that soaked Aang too. He looked up at her sheepishly. “Uh, sorry.”

* * *

  


2\. Sweets

Aang remembered them from his childhood and he just knew that Katara would love the little strawberry-carrot cakes. The problem was making them. He borrowed Iroh’s kitchen and recreated the recipe from memory. He had to do a lot of taste testing to make sure he was getting the proportions right.

At one point Iroh came in and looked around. He tasted the batter too, and said, “Ah, the sweet taste of young love. You should stay tomorrow too.” He clapped Aang ont he back and glanced around at the mess of the kitchen. “We may need to get help to clean.”

Aang, focused on pouring the right amount of batter into the pans, wasn’t worried. A little airbending and little waterbending and it would be fine.

The cakes didn’t quite come out the way he remembered them.

“Well,” said Katara after she tried to take a bite and nearly broke a tooth. “Maybe if we soak them in tea first.”

* * *

  


3\. Picnic

The next time, Aang went to the market to buy the dumplings for their picnic. They went to a promontory above a river outside Ba Sing Se. Below, a group of earthbenders were checking the dams after the heavy rains of the last few weeks. The whole plain below was farmland that used the river water for irrigation. They watched them for a little while; they looked like busy ants far below.

Aang had just unpacked the dumplings when Katara gasped. “Aang look!” She pointed at the river. “The dam’s breaking! They can’t hold it. Quick, get us down there! I’ll hold back the river. You get the people out of the way!”

Aang lost no time grabbing his glider.

By the end of the day — crisis averted — both of them were so exhausted they forgot about the dumplings.

* * *

  


4\. Dinner

The restaurant Aang picked was one of the nicest in Ba Sing Se, but it wasn’t too expensive either. What Aang hadn’t counted on was that it meant that the restaurant would be really crowded, making it hard to find a seat, and “Aang! Katara! Hey over here!” that Sokka and Toph would be there too. “Come sit with us!”

“Hey, Twinkle Toes. How’s it going Sweetness?” Toph made room for them at the table, and Sokka said over Aang’s protests, “We don’t you see you much anymore,” and “How great is this! The Original Four together again!”

Aang and Katara couldn’t say no to that. They exchanged a rueful look then put on real smiles because it was good to see Sokka and Toph.

* * *

  


1\. Compliments

Romance was the last thing on Aang’s mind as he and Katara flew south on Appa to visit the Southern Water Tribe. They had gotten a late start and he was more concerned with where they would camp for the night as they flew over forests of the Earth Kingdom. The sun had just gone down, a little light lingering as the stars came out overhead. Aang was having a hard time seeing the ground.

He only stopped peering over Appa’s broad head when Katara joined him. She sat with her arms wrapped around her knees in front of her, resting her cheek on her wrists as she looked at Aang.

“Hi, Aang,” she greeted him with a smile.

Aang smiled back, “Hi, Katara.”

“It’s beautiful out,” she said without looking away from him.

Aang actually felt the crackle in the air between them, like something alive, wonderful and free.

“It sure is,” he said, not taking his eyes off her either. Then without another word, he leaned toward her and she leaned toward him until their lips met and they kissed under the wide open sky.


End file.
